"Auspicious"

Ryomen Sukuna, the King of Curses, was in a foul mood.

A few days earlier, a black bear that did not know its place had gone on a rampage and brought down his favorite ice cellar.

Although he had painstakingly cooked that black bear in a hundred and eight different ways afterward, none of that could bring back the melted ice.

To clear his head, he decided to leave his territory, Hida Province, for a while.

As for where he would go...

He had no idea. He had never considered such a question.

By the time he came to his senses, he no longer knew where he had wandered.

He picked a random ordinary person to ask for directions, only for them to start trembling at the sight of him, unable to get a word out.

That made Sukuna's already poor mood even worse, and he used Dismantle on the spot.

After questioning several more people in succession, he finally learned from a peasant woman that he was in Mutsu Province.

After a hearty meal, Sukuna's mood improved a little.

Picking scraps of food from between his teeth with a sharp claw, Sukuna wandered into a bamboo grove without realizing it.

Following the cursed residue and the chill in the air, he soon barged into its deepest reaches.

"A shikigami user, a Cursed Spirit Manipulation user... and a sorcerer who uses ice."

The King of Curses could tell at a glance that three ant-level jujutsu sorcerers had stopped here not long ago.

For some reason, the sight of the cool blocks of ice around him stirred an irritation in Sukuna's heart.

It was as though he had lost something important.

"Why do I feel so irritated?"

Sukuna folded his upper pair of arms across his chest and planted his lower pair on his hips. His eyes narrowed slightly, and even the mouth on his stomach turned down.

Despite his towering stature, such a strange pose diminished his imposing presence considerably.

"Perhaps it's because they reminded me of the ice cellar."

With that thought, Sukuna lingered no longer. He turned and left the bamboo grove.

What a boring backwater.

Shinji Zenin looked at Uraume, now dressed in new clothes, then at Megumi Zenin and Jianxia, who stood off to the side whispering about who knew what. For a moment, he was at a loss for words.

Megumi's cursed technique was indeed their inherited technique, the Ten Shadows Technique.

But as he recalled, the Ten Shadows Technique was used to tame shikigami. It did not have an effect that let its user pick up jujutsu sorcerers on the road!

How had Megumi brought home two jujutsu sorcerers in a single week?

"Senior Jianxia, will Father really agree to take Uraume in...?"

Megumi Zenin felt uneasy about bringing Uraume to the Zenin Estate without warning. Senior Jianxia was an expert, after all, so bringing him home as a guest was one thing.

Uraume might also have been a jujutsu sorcerer, but ultimately, he was only a child who had yet to show any talent.

That was precisely why Megumi Zenin feared her father would refuse to take Uraume in.

Jianxia, however, showed no trace of anxiety, as though everything was under control.

"Megumi, relax. Your dad isn't heartless. Never mind a child who's a jujutsu sorcerer-I reckon he'd be happy to lend a hand even if he found an ordinary child by the roadside."

Although they had not spent much time together, Jianxia had still gotten a handle on Shinji Zenin's personality.

He was the sort who seemed carefree on the surface but was actually meticulous.

Their first meeting might have involved him playing the part of a suicide truck bomber, but while learning Hollow Wicker Basket, Jianxia had gained a thorough understanding of Shinji's expertise.

"Besides, honestly, with only two jujutsu sorcerers in the Zenin Clan right now, any extra fighting strength is good news."

Jianxia glanced out of the corner of his eye at Uraume and Shinji, who were talking, and offered the central reasoning behind his judgment.

"Even in the worst case, if your eldest uncle and your great-uncle come knocking to purge the clan and restore its rightful lineage, they'll definitely bring weapons and a whole crowd with them."

Jianxia picked up a twig, crouched down, and drew a simple sketch in the sand depicting the other two Zenin branches surrounding Shinji and Megumi.

"If we train Uraume into an excellent jujutsu sorcerer by then, wouldn't that ease the pressure on that front? Don't you think?"

Jianxia added a muscular Uraume to the sketch, sending the other Zenins, led by Shinichi Zenin and Kago Zenin, flying with a few punches and kicks.

After hearing Jianxia's argument, Megumi Zenin's eyes shone. Like Imperial Uncle Liu hearing the Longzhong Plan to divide the realm into three, she gazed at him with undisguised admiration.

"As expected of Senior Jianxia! You thought of something I never could, just like that!"

"You're just too stupid!"

Just as Jianxia and Megumi Zenin finished talking, Shinji Zenin and Uraume wrapped up their conversation as well.

"Master Jianxia, please come over. Megumi, you come along too."

The two entered the tearoom one after the other. Uraume sat quietly on his knees on the tatami, while Shinji motioned for them to sit.

Megumi knelt like a well-bred young lady, while Jianxia sat cross-legged across from Shinji.

"Clan Head Zenin, how did the conversation go? I've assessed Uraume, and the kid has excellent talent. You'd really lose out if you let him slip away."

Like someone pitching his own product, Jianxia began rattling off the benefits of taking Uraume in before Shinji could even speak.

To his surprise, Shinji merely smiled, glanced at Uraume, then addressed Jianxia.

"Heh, Master Jianxia, when it comes to Uraume, I should be the one asking you."

"Asking me?"

Jianxia scratched his head, not quite understanding what he meant.

"Master Jianxia, Uraume told me that he only wishes to follow Lord Jianxia and has no desire to join any clan."

Uraume smiled at Jianxia, then lowered his head with great respect.

"I only wish to remain by Lord Jianxia's side and serve him... Lord Jianxia gave me a reason to live and the courage to go on."

If not for Jianxia's earlier words, Uraume would probably still have been wallowing in despair, believing himself to be a curse and wanting to end his life.

In the original story, it was Sukuna's appearance that made Uraume feel needed, leading him to become the King of Curses' loyal hound.

Now, naturally, Uraume had pledged his loyalty instead to Jianxia, who had led him out of the shadows.

Although Uraume's words certainly demonstrated his loyalty to Jianxia, why did they sound so strange...?

Uraume, you're not a cursed spirit, after all. Things won't work out between two men...

That was what Jianxia thought, but he did not say it aloud. He merely answered Uraume with a confident smile.

Then Shinji Zenin turned his gaze toward him.

"Master Jianxia, this may seem rather sudden, but I do have a request."

Shinji Zenin took a scroll from inside his robes and spread it open. It turned out to be a map.

But with its densely packed writing and messy drawing, Jianxia genuinely could not tell what place it depicted.

"According to my informant, my elder brother and second uncle have now joined the Fujiwara Clan in Heian-kyo and secured their support. They could attack us at any time under the pretext of suppressing rebels."

"To protect ourselves, I intend to establish an elite unit within the Zenin Clan, composed entirely of jujutsu sorcerers with innate cursed techniques. Its name will be 'Auspicious.'"

Shinji moved his finger back and forth across the map, apparently indicating the two Zenin Clan factions in Heian-kyo and Hiraizumi.

Then Shinji looked at Jianxia, his gaze sincere.

"I would like to ask you, Master Jianxia, to serve as the head of Auspicious. As my partner, equal in standing to me as the head of the Zenin Clan, you would help me weather this crisis facing our clan."